The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1887-02-10
A.yaC,IVlL WAR ECHO.
OLD VIRGINIA AND HER DEBT.
tx. s Governor Piorpont Tells Graphically
( How Il Cnnie About mud Why II Ought Il
Not To I'e saddied on West Virginia.
What Our lsoys Fought For, ali

To The Editor Of tie Initiligenetr. N f
sIR:-lt is the denlsn OF this article to
present aome views on the rela.ions Of
Virginia, Wert Virginia and tho Govern.
ment OF the United Stated 10 tho old State
debt Of Virginia. The views preuon,ed
will be based Oh the facts OF history and
conclusions drawn without intending to
harshly reflect on anybody, hoping that
1t may lead to better understanding Of
the queatioas Involved. -aEt'3t
In 1860 Virginia WAS a happy, prosper.
GUS Commonwealth. Rich in land, agri.
cultural Improvements and products, in
slaves and internal improvements, rich in
her stocks, her bonda, banks and money,
and commerce, aud tho uudeveloped 70.
sources Of the State, proud Of her honor.
able traditions and tho history Of her great
men. All these constituted tho basis on
which credit was givon .ha State in loano
OF money for which her bonds were Is.
ausd, and but for the destruction OF her
material intereats no question would ever
have been raised rs to the payment Of in.
tereet and principal OF her State bonds.
THE EVIL. HOUR. 'I+
But tho evil hour came. Her people
listened to strange counEels. An extra
session OF tho Legislature was called, 1t
called State convention, tho convention
passed an ordinance OF secession on the
l7ta Of April, 1861, on the 23rd OF the
Hame month tho convention ratified the
Constitution Of the Confederate States.
and on tho 9Th Of May, 1851, the Congress
Of the Confederate States passed an act
admitting the commonwealth OF Virginia
as one Of the Confederate States OF
America. Her people were organized for
military conflict with the army of the
Union before the fourth Thursday in Nav,
1861, when the ordinance OF accession was
to be voted upon By the ppople Of tho
State. The recollection OF thess events
appears Ikea myth. But it was solemn
reality 10 the State. 5s7. =
TIE WASTE OF WAR. h
The armies Of tho two contending sec.
tiong Of the Nation met on battle fieldz
within her territory. For four years
these armies marched and countermareh.
ed and Tough. within the boundaries, un.
til the resources OF the two sections were
nearly exhausted. In this conflict tho
greater part of the wealth OF the State waH
destroyed. Fences and foreat we're ewept
away Live stock OF every kind wa9 con.
sumed or driven oil. seventy.fiye eriet
nills with thoir contents and two thou
sand burns, with wheat and agricultural
implements, were made food for the de.
vcuriug flames in single campaign. Two
hundred and fifty million dsllars worth
Of slaves were emsncipated. Millions OF
bank stock and bank paper, millions Of
railroad n!ocks-all became worthless.
Little Of her railroads was left but the
road bed. The crcWning loss Was the
commercial portion OF her metropolitan
city, which contained most Of the propi.
aions Of the State left at time. 30 great
had been the drain On the living OF tho
people, and tho destruction OF property.
that but for fortuitous circumstances
famine and pes;i!encs must have followed
in the track OF the war. Add to all this
that thousands Of men, in the bloom Of
youth and prime Of manhood, had fallen
on the battiedelds, or In hospitals. or were
wounded for life. This was war in all it's
realities. 1t came suddenly and unex-
pectedly, AZ most wars do. Why it came
lsGye to ths causist. 1t is not my pur-
pose to censure anybody. War is an Incl.
dent to humanity as much 80 as measlee
or small pox. l,t,!N .5-, n
WHERE TIE bonds WERE uELD.
At tho commencement Of the war, or ut
the close, it has been stated that so per-
cant Of the State bonds were held in Vir-
ginia. n isy Els ).
All the. people in the bounds Of the
State, as 1t now is, with singular unanimi.
ty, engaged in the war OF scceeeion, or re.
bellion, with but few exceptions. Bond
holders and non.boRdholders pledged to
each other their lives and fortunes ior tho
SUCCESS OF ths undertaking.. The enter.
prise tailcd; but in its prosecution nll the
losses occurred to ths people, to which
reference has been made. At the close of
the war, in 1865, the bondholdsr did not
think Of demanding iniores! Or principal,
for the simple reeoon that, from the i'm
poverished condition o; tho State, he
knew that 1t WAS impossible f3r the people
to pay. In procos3 OF time he came,
stealthily, still knowing the inability Of
the people to pay the interest and asked
that it might be funded into neg bond,
The eNswer should have been, Contrib
ute TO- our losses and we will pay your
bond. II not, reduce your bond in pro.
portion to our losses aud wO vii! pay the
residue if any" -. -...s&', =,
This would have bsea simply an eqpita.
Bile demand for equitable contribution for
losses in a common cause engaged in by
bondEolder aud people. s,s
I|. AN EQUITABLE vIEw.- a.ij
The bondholdsr poiutn to the Federal
and State Constitutions in regard to the
obligation Of contracts; The people can
poiut to the same Constitutions guaraa-
teeing to them their legal and equitable
rights to Gil the property which was dc.
stroyel. The right OF the owner OF tie
gtist mill, whic. was burnt in the prose.
cution of the war, WAS just ss clear and
Iindispntable, as the the right, OF the hold.
or OF n Virginia bond, wsg to his bond
Further, by an amendment Of thc Consti-
tuition Of tho United Sta:es, il ia provided
that no compensation shall bs na 10 for
any slaves elnancipated or Tor any lia-
bility incurred In support Of thu rebellion.
Tho Congress OF the United States has
also decided that no citizen, loyal or dis
loyal, hes any claim on the United States
for property destroyed ia the prosecution
OF the war. Virginia should never have
agreed to pay one csnt on the debt until
the bondholder had agreed to fair aud
equitable contribution to be deducted
from this bond, in proportion to tho Losses
OF taxable property sustained by the peo.
pie. There is no repudiation about this;
| it simply proposes equitable contribution.
WEST yIRo1SiA's SHARE.
AS to the share West Virginia is to pay
without going into detail, /. may be said
thst there is prevalent opinion among
the ben. informed men in tho State that